The Obelisk & The Thieves

A huge thanks must be given out to my new KGB friends, without them I wouldn't have had the inspiration to write this.

Ven floated up to the tavern, known to most thieves as the main base for the Thieves Guild. He never really asked himself why this was the case. He simply assumed it had something to do with Kanrik liking the coffee served here. It wasn't a fancy tavern in the least, rather it was quite run down, and looked as if it would fall apart if a large blizzard had occurred. That was the problem with having the base be located in Terror Mountain, had to dress for the area, or else you'll end up frozen.

Ven didn't mind; he was already a ghost.

The first thing one would notice upon entering the tavern would probably be the pile of socks located in the corner. It seems several members of the Thieves Guild have found it amusing to steal people's socks, usually only one of them, that way they wouldn't have a matching pair. Kanrik usually let them off, but urged them to try for something valuable next time.

The second thing noticed probably would be the excessive amount of glitter sprayed all over the place. Kanrik would get pretty angry if he found any in his coffee, so around the leader's usual table would be considered a glitter free zone. Ven wasn't overly fond of the stuff; he would spend several minutes each day getting it off all of his clothing. What kind of thief likes glitter anyway?

The ghost Hissi wandered into the place. It was late at night; the place was definitely going to be busy. Tonight however, it looked as if it was busier than usual. The sock pile was occupied by desert Lutari duo, who Ven recalls as a duo known for their love of adding onto the sock pile, and then sleeping in it. The thought of sleeping on a pile of someone's socks wasn't a particularly pleasant thought to him.

The tavern was filled with other various patrons, he could make out the shapes of a Darigan Flotsam, a mutant Lupe, a Halloween Uni, and a pirate Xweetok. The Thieves Guild didn't discriminate against membership, but you had to prove yourself before you could become a member. This generally left those who glowed to not be eligible for membership.

Ven looked towards the glitter free zone. Kanrik was sitting there drinking from his coffee. He had finished talking to a Yurble, who presumably had some important information to tell him. The leader of the Thieves Guild was lost in thought, judging by the way he just sat there; looking at what Ven presumed was a map. Next to Kanrik was a dashing pirate Lupe, who the Hissi thief had known to be a great fan of Kanrik. The Gelert had tried to ignore the Lupe on several occasions, but often failed, and ended up glaring at him until he walked off to fetch more coffee. Ven just wished the Lupe had some pants on.

The Hissi sat himself at a booth. A royal Kyrii stepped into the building, wrapped in a silken red cloak, with golden embroidery. Several eyes looked in his direction. Telthar enjoyed walking into the place in this outfit. It was an open invitation to try to steal from him. Often times, they failed, he was a clever Kyrii, and was prepared to launch a blazing orb of fire at any who tried.

Telthar, while not a member of the Thieves Guild, made regular contact with them. He found the guild to be an excellent source of information, and information helped get him ahead in society. The Kyrii joined Ven at his booth. The Hissi already had coffee prepared for the both of them.

"So, I hear the guild is receiving some big news tonight. Nobody is sure what, but a trail of messengers said it was something important." The Kyrii took a sip from the coffee. He didn't understand what was with the thieves, and coffee.

Ven nodded. "That's what I heard as well. I came to see what the deal was. I think Kanrik just finished speaking with the messenger. He's over there looking at a map I think." He stared at the cup of coffee. There was a speck of glitter floating in it. Ugh.

Kanrik got up from his seat. His biggest fan stood not far behind. He got up onto the chair in order to make an announcement.

"Everyone, please be quiet for a moment," he yelled. The tavern immediately went silent. Everyone's attention was focused on him. Even those in the sock mound got out of it to listen to their leader. "It has come to our attention that something was found in Tyrannia. An obelisk of arcane origin was discovered. We don't know what it is, or where it came from. No good comes from an artefact like this. Some of you were present during the leadership of Galem Darkhand. A repeat of these events must not happen again. We will find out what this thing is, and if we have to, we will fight in order to make sure it does not fall into the wrong hands. To anyone who is with me, we will begin our journey to Tyrannia tomorrow. We must get it first. For the guild!"

The tavern erupted in cheers. Ven knew that tomorrow the tavern would be near abandoned. The word of Kanrik, while not law, was greatly followed. In his time of leadership, the pockets of the thieves were much larger than they were in the past. The Kyrii smirked. "Obelisk in Tyrannia eh? That is going to attract a lot of attention. Do you think your allies will be able to handle it?"

Ven wondered for a moment, staring at the glitter floating in the center of his mug. He wasn't inexperienced in combat. He had participated in several wars in the past, even assisting Kanrik in the old days. Though, that was before the Hissi became a ghost. "I believe that we will succeed, or else we will fall trying. We won't give up until the obelisk is under our control."

The Kyrii nodded at this. He felt inspiration from the excitement of the thieves in the tavern. They were a good group. He knew this. Almost none of them would want a repeat of the Bringer of Night. He wondered about the obelisk though. Where did it come from? He would probably go meet with his friends in the Order of the Erisim. If anyone could figure out an artefact of arcane origin, it is them. Hopefully the Thieves and the Order will get along in the end. "Very well, I wish you the best, Ven. I know you will try your hardest. Even as a ghost you're still loyal to this place, aren't you?"

The Hissi smiled. "Forever and always. The guild shall be my home. Maybe I'll tell you the story someday. I presume you're headed to see your wizard friends?"

Telthar laughed. "Yes, I figure they're going to find out about the obelisk soon enough. I feel we're going to have a conflict on our hands, the scale of which the world has never seen. Keep your blades sharp. I'm sure you'll need them." With that Telthar got up from the booth after taking a final sip of his coffee. "Thanks for the coffee by the way."

Ven nodded. Telthar was a good friend of his. He owed the Kyrii, so getting him coffee from time to time was the least he could do. As the wizard departed, the Hissi thief noticed many of the thieves were all going through their supplies. Ven looked in his pouch. He would need to stop in Faerieland and get some more healing potions before heading to Tyrannia. He was sure he'd need them. He slipped out of the tavern, heading towards Faerieland. This is going to be an interesting few weeks, he thought.

Everyone Loves the Undead: Part ThreeRobert came to with a long groan, rolling on the hay away from the sun now burning above him. It was a good job the full moon had been on a Friday, or he would have been very late for work.